How it all started…

Growing up, I never had cable television and I wasn’t one of those people who was lucky enough to grow up near the ocean. Whenever my parents and I would spend the weekend at my grandfather’s house, one of my favorite things to do was to stay up late watching wildlife documentaries. My favorite show was Steve Irwin's "The Crocodile Hunter" and I dreamed from a young age of visiting Australia and diving in the Great Barrier Reef.

In 2019, my husband and I decided to get scuba certified and to make that dream come true. Looking back now, I can say that our trip to Australia changed the course of my life. Watching wildlife documentaries is what initially ignited a desire in me to learn more about the ocean, but getting scuba certified, visiting some of these ecosystems myself as well as having conversations with people who've spent their lives protecting them, is what really made me passionate about taking action now in order to preserve the beauty of our oceans.

Having grown up in Ohio and far from any coastline, I've always been very appreciative of wildlife filmmakers and storytellers who sparked that curiosity for the ocean in me from such a young age. I believe that storytelling yields an incredible amount of power and potential to drive change that can positively impact our oceans. By sharing my own personal experiences as well as the experiences of others, I hope to bring ocean stories to people who might not otherwise have any exposure to the ocean or be aware of the challenges it faces and to empower people to take action and to believe that we can all make a difference.